Black Diamond Bay @ Richards May 30, Vancouver
Black Diamond Bay is Patrick’s current band, and they were recently here on tour with The Dears as well as Jets Overhead. Patrick is having fun touring with his ex-bandmate’s, The Dears, because Murray and Patrick are still very good friends, and they hang out when they are at home in Montreal.
We enjoyed a cold beer 2 blocks from the venue on one of the hottest days here in Vancouver so far this year. The staff at the bar we went to were not used to having patrons doing an interview, but we found it amusing. Patrick tells me that since leaving The Dears, he’s been constantly writing music, playing with friends and putting whatever bands he could together. The current line up in the band are his cousin Andre on bass, George (also an ex-member of the Dears) on the drums and Roberto on the keyboards, who‘s been working with Patrick for the last 5 years in different projects. Patrick says that he really wanted to work on this project with all of them.
I ask him about his home city of Montreal, and other than hating the weather, he loves the city. He isn’t as familiar with other cities in Canada so it’s not a safe assessment for him to compare Vancouver or Calgary with Montreal. He isn’t a club person or into the scene there, but instead emphasizes that the standard of living is affordable for struggling artists, and not having your money sucked into paying rent is a plus.
Patrick finds his musical inspiration is based in reality. What he feels, encounters and experiences is his reality and this is what he writes about. The reality of his life triggers his music, and having a “real” feeling that he can turn into sound is very gratifying. He also tells me that he can turn that around and he will remember how he felt in the presence of “sound”.
When I asked Patrick how he sees the current state of the Music Industry, his initial reaction was that the industry is in panic mode. He feels that they don’t put enough energy or focus into any new band as far as the “big labels” go. They don’t want to take a chance and instead they go with what they know. He’s also hearing that people are losing jobs, record labels shutting down and generally hears bad things all the time. Patrick also states that there are many bands who are just in it to be in a band. They have no talent and just want to be rock stars who have a bullshit attitude. These bands and people will not last and they will fade away for bands with substance and talent. He and his band are not in it for the money or glamour and they never will be. They play with a passion for music and for the love of sound.
When it comes to garnering media attention, Patrick states that once you get your foot in the door and you have an interview with someone, suddenly people start to notice you. But he admits that it is difficult to get that foot in the door initially. When they released Calm Awaits, it was hard to get any mainstream press. And he and his band are happy that they have been getting a decent amount of press lately.
When Patrick was asked about the goals of the band and the music, artistically they would like to constantly change it up and evolve, and generally just keep getting better, while career ambitions are to have a sustainable career and make a living with playing music. In a 2 year period, they would like to have another record out and be more on an international level in the US and Europe. Patrick can see this and envision it clearly.
The bands and their music that made Patrick want to be a musician were Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, and The Beatles. He was not inspired by their wild lifestyles which he found out later in his life about. In some of the songs that Patrick writes, particularly the ballads like “First Time I See You Again”, there is a Roy Orbison - John Lennon influence that you can hear, and Patrick is admirers of these musicians as well. He tells me that the working title of that song was “Fifties (1950’s)” because of the melody and the way it sounds, and on the set lists for shows, the song is listed this way. On a musical level, he can relate best to Jimi Hendrix. He feels that his ideals may be similar but he isn’t sure about that - he relates to Jimi’s music. Patrick is musical and he is driven to make music but he wasn’t always like that. The last 10 years have been a creative high for him, and music consumes him by his own admission 24/7. He has on numerous occasions been working on a song and been stuck on something, went to sleep and upon waking, he just knows how to make it sound and it turns out to be right. Ironically when he was in school, he would do the same thing with math equations.
The best venue that he’s played in is a tough one for him to answer. A venue in Mexico stands out. The vibe was there. In Canada, Lee’s Palace and The Horseshoe stands out but really he says they are all similar. He’s happy to play anywhere, but admits that there were some places they’ve played that should never host concerts.
Patrick is a very focused individual and in the long run, this will serve him well. I believe him when he says that in 2 years time, he will have world domination with this band.
You can visit the band's MYSPACE page and their WEBSITE.
Labels: Black Diamond Bay, jade sperry, jaded photography, patrick krief, the Dears
